printer friendly version

Better mousetrap for public safety communications

Since 1999, there has been a quiet debate raging in South Africa concerning the creation of a trunked radio communications infrastructure covering emergency services and municipalities nationwide. In May, Communications Minister Dr Ivy Matsepe-Casaburri approved plans to move forward with development. Driving implementation is state-owned signal distributor, Sentech, who will serve as the system's operator after installation is complete.

Proponents of the project say several issues make it a good thing for South Africa. Firstly, in a time of escalating crime rates, response effectiveness from public safety services is being hampered by technology that is several decades old. Secondly, the lack of a flexible national architecture constrains the ability of authorities to deliver reliable safety services in times of crisis (eg fires, flooding, etc).

Thirdly, the introduction of a national system would save taxpayers money in the long-run by eliminating the duplication of effort and coverage that currently exists in crowded areas such as Gauteng. And, finally, only by tackling the issue on a national level will authorities in previously disadvantaged and remote areas be given access to a reliable public safety communications system.

According to Mark Ellis, Motorola CGISS' Director of Sales (Africa), the best way to visualise how a national system would work is to picture a tree. "The basic make-up of all trees is that the trunk provides a common backbone for all of the branches. The branches, in turn, support offshoots and leaves."

In the case of trunked radio, the trunk is the accumulation of interoperable hardware located around the nation (sort of like cellular towers) and the branches are the different user groups, which, in the case of South Africa could include everything from police in Pretoria to ambulance services in Durban to fire brigades in Cape Town.

Going digital

Currently, the ability to co-ordinate crisis response in such a way is impossible in South Africa. While it is possible for fellow officers within a specific public safety discipline to reach one or all of his own colleagues via two-way radio (eg Cape Town fireman to Cape Town fireman), if those officers need to communicate with someone from outside their own discipline (ie fireman to ambulance team) they have to use a cellphone or a different radio. In terms of both time and money, this scenario has the potential to create significant problems in time-critical emergency situations and could make the difference between life and death for both the officers and those they are trying to assist.

According to Ellis, "A digital radio system, operating on a dedicated national frequency, would be more flexible than the legacy systems currently in place in South Africa. This is because digital packages are transmitted in a manner that provides near wire-line quality voice communication and enables users to quickly relay vital data, in a variety of formats, directly to those who need it."

For further details contact Motorola CGISS on tel: (0944) 1256 484 505.

Share this article:

Further reading: